The Romance Dance
SUNDAY We made another simple discovery
today. It takes a bit longer than an hour and a half for four women
to get ready and out the door. Missy and Mary did not have time to
eat breakfast and Missy applied her makeup in the car. We were on
time for the Atlanta Bethel prophesy team. Pretty much on the dot on
time. Whee.
Image from ibethelatlanta.org/site/index.html
The church meets at The Association of Black
Cardiologists (ABC) building on Hunter Road.
By the time we arrived, the worship
band was already practicing, the chairs were set up, the children's
area had all the signs posted, the coffee table was set, everything
seemed in its place, and peace had pervaded the place. We waited in
the lobby along the front windows for Hector and his team to arrive.
On one wall in the lobby hallway there
was a map of the Atlanta area with the home groups pointed out. I did
not count them as we waited but I saw that these home groups are
going to explode and pop like popcorn all over the city. An ember has
blown across the city and it is catching the whole area on fire.
Later, after worship, I saw a huge flock of birds who were at first
congregating on the ground, get stirred up by the presence of the Holy Spirit, which caused them all to take off in flight all at once
and scatter, filling the sky, and in every direction, across the
city.
image from aaccessmaps.com/show/map/us/ga/atlanta_metro_sw
Then one by one, we went in to a room
for the first part of the Dance lead by Daddy God. For those readers
who may not be aware of this, the Bible refers to God, who is our
heavenly Father, as Abba Father. Abba is a term of endearment and can
be translated Daddy. So Daddy God began The Romance Dance with each
one of us, one by one.
The words of prophesy for each of us
were accurate, and reflected what we already knew of one another. And
embellishing the fabric of our gifts, were seed pearls and sparkly sequins of
detail that took our breath away with more amazement, excitement and
anticipation. Not only did Daddy begin the Romance dance. He gave us
fitting clothes to wear for the occasion.
image modified from skyjules.com/mirrored-cloud-wings/
Before the service, the Intercessor
team surrounded us like a rope to pray over us and gave some more
words of prophesy and encouragement. We were well taken care of, as the Bethel people are kind and hospitable, and
procured seats in the third row in the center. Worship was beautiful.
The presence of God could tangibly be felt in the room. I recorded a
brief clip of one of the songs we sang. If I can figure out how to
post it here, I will, so you can experience a piece of the dance for
yourself.
The service was excellent and I felt
honored to see what the Spirit of God is doing in this group of head
over -heels- in -love -with- Jesus Christians. They are up to big
things; the supernatural is normal and extravagant generosity makes
sense. The Lead pastor acknowledged our presence, along with other
notable visitors in the room. It was not necessary, but we were
honored in the presence of the congregation. We felt welcome all over
again. We happened to be come the day the introduction of the new
pastor and his wife, who had only arrived from Redding, CA a few days
earlier with their 4 daughters, occurred for the whole church. They shared their hearts and
in a nutshell, what I see, Daddy God is romancing this group of
people too. They are heading toward huge things.
The constant comfort of a daddy image by Missy Smith at Bethel Atlanta
I did not want it to end, except for
the rumblings of our bellies. As the intercessor team prayed for
anyone desiring prayer up front, we were introduced to several more
people as we made our way out the aisle. One of
the women, Suzanne, walked past me to talk to Lesa and as she did I
felt and saw a big container of power go past. When the opportunity
presented itself and I knew the timing was right for it, I gave her a
word of prophesy about this. I felt like the words coming out my mouth
were packages of power, pointed and marked for a bulls eye. The
packets of power feeling confirmed one of the Words I got only
minutes before. The Dance continued. I called Suzanne our first
fruits. She was activated this day as well.Glide. Twirl. Do-See-Do.
Suzanne sent another beautiful lady out
to the car to get a special book to give to us.She felt God was going
to use us to go deeper into intercession and wanted us to have this
book. She came back in drenched from the downpour outside.
Sacrifice. Love. Generosity. Dance, step, twirl.
We ended up not being able to find the
restaurant we intended to go to (GPS took us on a wild goose chase,
but we got to see the city and pray over it and experience the beauty
of mid town.) On our second attempt, we finally came to the
recommended burger joint.
I have been on the look out for cowboy
boots but never saw any. I was reminded that I do not need to force
anything to happen.
Grindhouse Killer Burger
Most excellent veggie burger I have
ever eaten, made from two kinds of beans and quinoa, smothered in
grilled onion, mushrooms and swiss. The salad was made from deep
leafy mixed greens, pickled red peppers and blue cheese crumbled on
top with other bits of raw veggies on top. Everyone else had real beef burgers. The Romance Dance swayed
on.
We went into the downtown area after
lunch and intended to walk around the area but a downpour kept us
from our initial plans and we found a two story Target instead,
parked in the adjacent parking garage. I have never seen women get so
excited about a two story ANYTHING let alone a two story Target. We
loved the shopping cart escalator device. As big as Newport News and
Hampton are, I still felt like a little country girl in the big city
as Mary and Missy experienced abandoned delight at these simple
pleasures.
We discovered The Container Store was
across the street so we went. It stopped raining and the dark heavy
clouds did not deter us from going. It is basket heaven over there.
It began raining again as we made our way back to the parking garage,
so we ran into CVS to find postcards. As we waited for the rain to
let up some, I connected with and loved people near the front door.
Step, sway, twirl.
Once back into the car and on the road
again, the GPS took us through winding roads through the old money
parts of Atlanta where the homes for sale are on the market for over $10 million
dollars. (I know because I looked on the Realtor smart phone ap.) It
was like a ride in a park. Glide. Spin. Slide.
Outside the city, heading toward
Alabama, the city scene made way into hills, forests and fields,
wound over rivers, expansive gray skies and green upon green
monochromatic landscapes. I never realized how beautifully hilly this
area is. Twirl. Glide. Gaze.
Alabama opened with at least two
National Forests, one after the other, against the backdrop of the
mountains to the west. Swing. Glide. Swirl. Breathing free.
The hotel was only an hour and a half
from Atlanta, midway between our next destination. As we rounded the
bend past other hotel chains, much to Missy and Mary's delight, we
saw our hotel, and peeking just above the roofline, was the Mellow
Mushroom road sign, a beacon to the pizza place they have been
romanticizing the whole trip for Lesa and I, who had never heard of
it. And then the familiar orange and black shield: Harley Davidson
was right next door, in between the Mellow Mushroom and our hotel. A
little further down the road, an Antique Mall Shop and a nail salon,
all within walking distance. We will have a few hours free time later
and can use them in any way we want. Sashe. Turn. Glide.Swirl. Spin.
We fellowshipped as a team in the
whirlpool hot tub at the hotel after dinner. Slide. Twirl. Dip.
What else could we do as a response to
His Romance Dance but soak in His sweet goodness and love and return
it right back to Him in praise and thanksgiving? Ending the day with
Communion and prayer, capped off by sweet slumber, we were kissed by Daddy God all day in
a Romance Dance that swept us off our feet and captivated our hearts again and again.
image by Missy Smith Communion in Alabama
